The annual Greening the Blue Report – The UN system’s environmental footprint and efforts to reduce it shows the progress both at the UN system-wide level and entity level of implementing the Strategy for Sustainability Management in the United Nations System 2020-2030, Phase I: Environmental Sustainability in the Area of Management (Sustainability Strategy I). The 2023 edition of the Greening the Blue Report, which provides 2022 data, was published on 21 December 2023. Commenting on the results from the report, António Guterres, UN Secretary-General noted, “The world must work together to address the triple planetary crisis of runaway climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. We at the United Nations must do our part with advocacy and action. I encourage all UN entities to set an example by greening the blue.” Sustainability Strategy I covers both environmental impact areas and management functions. Highlights of the Greening the Blue Report 2023’s UN system-wide 2022 data results include: Environmental Impact Areas Greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) - the UN’s operations and facilities emitted 1.4 million tonnes of CO2eq in total or 4.6 tonnes CO2eq per capita. The UN system’s GHG emissions by source were 38% from air travel, 47% from facilities and 15% from other forms of travel Waste - the average waste generated for the whole UN system was 321 kg/person Water - the average water consumption by the UN system was 49 m3 per UN personnel per year Management Functions Environmental Governance – 7 UN entities have met or exceeded the criteria for implementing an Environmental Management System, with an additional 15 entities approaching the criteria Procurement* – 24 out of 29 organizations implemented formal sustainable procurement policies in their procurement processes Human Resources – 31 entities have environmental training available for their staff Greening the Blue Report 2023 highlights the environmental impacts of over 308,000 personnel in 57 entities across Headquarters, field offices and operations on the ground. The report also includes a case study from a UN entity on each of the environmental impact areas and management functions. To read the whole report and the detailed entity level data, please visit greeningtheblue.org. *Procurement data is taken from the 2022 Annual Statistical Report on United Nations Procurement. More information Methodologies and data collection used, please visit greeningtheblue.org/methodology. Methodology related to travel emissions provided by the International Civil Aviation Organisation please visit the ICAO website. For climate neutrality, please visit the UNFCCC website. For more information, please contact: UN Environment Programme E-mail: unepnewsdesk@unep.org
Europe’s commitment to a 90% emissions reduction by 2040 represents a defining moment for sustainable construction and the move toward net zero whole life carbon performance. Developers, contractors and material producers face accelerating demands to measure and manage both operational and embodied carbon. Rigorous whole life carbon assessment is expected to become a prerequisite for investment and planning, aligning with decarbonising the built environment across Europe.
Major housebuilders are beginning to integrate sustainable building design as policy tightens. Octopus Energy and Barratt Redrow’s partnership to deliver “Zero Bills” homes in Bedfordshire and Gloucestershire demonstrates how energy-efficient buildings are evolving into scalable net zero carbon buildings. These projects embed renewable building materials, electrified systems and smart energy management to reduce the carbon footprint of construction and create high-performing, low carbon building solutions. The trend signals a shift toward eco-design for buildings, where life cycle cost is weighted as heavily as first cost.
Large-scale infrastructure is moving in the same direction. Encyclis’ plan to integrate carbon capture technology at its Rookery South energy-from-waste plant marks a critical development in carbon neutral construction. The strategy underlines how low embodied carbon materials, circular construction strategies and lifecycle assessment can jointly deliver reductions in embodied carbon in materials and extend building lifecycle performance.
With environmental sustainability in construction now central to European climate strategy, investors and clients are prioritising sustainable building practices verified through environmental product declarations (EPDs), BREEAM and the forthcoming BREEAM V7 framework. Pressure to demonstrate whole life carbon performance and transparent sustainable material specification is intensifying. Procurement criteria increasingly reference lifecycle assessment, circular economy in construction methods and resource efficiency in construction to demonstrate measurable carbon footprint reduction.
The pace of transition remains the final variable. Those aligning early with sustainable design principles, low carbon design standards and circular economy models are better positioned to meet performance expectations, control life cycle cost and achieve verifiable decarbonisation. In this emerging landscape, inertia risks both financial and reputational cost, while proactive compliance sets the path toward sustainable urban development and a resilient, low-impact construction sector.
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